The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-02-27
BOSTON CuRBETT.
His Personal Notwithstanding |
Stories of His Courage.

STORIES OF his Courage.
Washington Special to New York Sun.
The news of Boston Corbett's latest misfortune
arouses sympathy here, where not few people
met the man twenty odd -sars ago and made
some little acquaintance with him. They re-
member him as queer perpendicular character,
combining good deal of the hero and something
of the crank. He was particularly religious and
applied the test of piety to other peoples con-
duct strictly and Extensively He never spoke Of
the shooting of John Wilkes Booth unless he WAS
asked to talk about it, and then be told of the
particulars of the affair with great apparent sor-
row. He received generous share of the $75, 900
which Secretary Stanton offered reward for
the capture of Booth and Harold, his proper
ton being something like $J. 200. There a
determined fight over the prize money La
fayette Baker who was then at the head of the
secret service, thought his bureau was entitled
to the whole of it. The distribution was made
after considerable discussion in Congress, upon
very curious plan. The only precedents for
the distribution Of prizes are those of the navy
1t decided that Captain Dougherty, who
commanded detail of the Sixteenth New
York Cavalry that captured Booth was in the
position OF an officer in command of q vessel
passing from one squadron to another, and
the way capturing prize. In that case all the
prize money in the navy goes to the captors.
Dougherty received $500. and the privates
in his detail received about $1,000 each.
Most Of them invested their money around
Plattsburg, N. Y. where they now live, pros
porous German farmers. Corbett put his share
into the hat business in Camden, n. j., where
he failed in 1878 He went to Kansas and set
tied near Concordia on homestead entry of
eighty acres. He proved up and applied for a
patent for his claim two years ago, and last sum-
mer acted in a very frantic way the delay
| occasioned by Commissioner Sparks's policy of
withholding land patents. Poor Corbett was so
| sick that he could hardly work, had no money,
could not pay his taxes could not get title to his
| land, and seemed to be in constant quarrel
with his neighbors. In letters which he wrote
/ to Captain Dougherty within the last few
months, he said he thought he should go crazy,
and be wished that God had stricken him with
/ lightning before he ever reached Kansas.
Some very interesting stories are told by
/ Captain Dougherty of Corhettls courage AT
| one time, in 1863. in Virginia. he was out on a
scouting expedition. in search Of Mosby, under
/ the command of an English captain, a big, red
/ faced six-footer. The entire day spent in
marching, and no sign of Mosby was seen. The
! Captain took his men into the middle of a large
/ field and went into bivouac early. While they
them. surprised the entire detachment,
| except the big captain, who, in some way
| escaped and walked back into the Union
/ lines Corbett tried to escape. but, being hard
| pressed. took refuge in an old stone we'll. From
| this coigp of vantage he leisurely returned fire
/ and kept his pursuers at distance. He winged
| several OF them and kept up random fire for
over an hour Finally Mosbv depoyed a skir
| mish line around the well and conferred the fire
of thirty or ferty men upon Corbett's little fort.
The bullets tore the curling all to pieces and
the confederates supposed they had killed the
| solitary garrison About an hour afterward
| couple of gray backs wandering up to the we'll
| looked down and saw corbetf at the bottom
| braced across the big powders with which
| the well was walled, cooly eating lunch
| from his haversack. He had emptied his car
bine and his six-shooter, and half hoped tina